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The next famous movie director might be in the desk next to you at Cal High.

Senior Jonathan Chan has dedicated the last four years ofhis life to creating short lmsand progressing along the pathto ful lling his dream job ofbeing a director.

“I’ve always been interested in the movie making process ever since I was a young child,” Chan said. “I was very inspired to make movies after seeing theStar Wars lms (original andprequel trilogy) and the IndianaJones lms.”

But Chan didn’t definitively make the decision to pursue l’m making as a career until2015, when he made a short public service announcement about texting while crossing the street with his classmate and friend, Calvin Kamson.

“We had won rst place inthe PSA competition and that day I made the decision that Iwas going to be a lmmaker,”Chan said.

In the last couple of years,Chan’s lms have been metwith great success and encour- agement.

“My first big success was a short lm I made in my sophomore year, titled ‘Coming Out,”’ Chan said.

The film is about two friends who are gay but are scared to talk about it with each other. Chan submitted the lm for the school district’s Student RecognitionProject and ended up winning first place.

“Coming Out” is Chan’s biggest YouTube success with 460,000 views and more than 8,000 likes.

Chan also won the 2017 Film-stro Short Film of the Year Film Competition with “The Audition,” a short one-minute fight sequence. Most of Chan’s films are typically filled with action, displaying his fantastic ability to choreograph fight scenes and create action sequences.

One of the ways Chan gotintroduced to lm and discovered lmmaking was throughhis family.

“My family has had a huge impact on my decision to become a lmmaker,” Chan said.“My family and I are moviebuffs and we watch lms likecrazy.”

But if Chan had to identify one person as his main inspi- ration it would be his father, William Chan.

William Chan was a special effects artist at Industrial Light & Magic and he has worked onlms such as “Star Wars: ThePhantom Menace” and “The Mummy.”

“My father not only educatedme about lmmaking in general,but he has been very supportiveof me as I grow as a lmmaker,” Chan said. “I’m just blessedthat my family has given me the opportunities to pursue my dreams, as many don’t have the privileges I have.”

Chan’s father is very proud of his son’s accomplishments. “Filmmaking brings out Jon-

athan’s creativity and he enjoysevery second of it,” William Chan said. “As a parent it’s amazing to see your child be tru- ly happy with what he is doing with his life. I, along with the rest of my family, will continue to support Jonathan through hislmmaking journey.”

Where Chan will continue hislmmaking career is up in theair. He is waiting to hear fromseveral lm schools to which

he applied, including the ones at USC, UCLA, NYU, Chap- man University, and Loyola Marymount.

“It would be an honor to attend the schools I applied to, but USC has been my dream school for many years,” Chan continued. “The location (LosAngeles), industry resources, guest panels, and community is what makes it the stand out choice for me when it comes tolm programs. When I visited the campus for the rst time, Iknew that I would have to work hard in order to get the chanceto attend the best lm school in

“I love every aspect of making movies, but what attracts me the most to l’m making is the fun that comes with it.” – Jonathan Chan

There is no doubt Chan has fallen in love with l’m making and considers it an important part of his life.

“I love every aspect of making movies but what attracts methe most to lmmaking is the funthat comes with it,” Chan said.“Even though the lmmakingprocess can be quite stressful, I always have fun while making a movie.”